Equestria Girls--Disability Girls
by The Lilac Elf of Lothlorien
Summary: When Sunset Shimmer returns to Equestria asking Twilight Sparkle for help regarding their friends, Twilight agrees and finds that the others are dealing with some serious physical disabilities. Twilight suspects Discord but there are some things that don't make sense.
1. Chapter 1

AUTHOR'S NOTES: So with the sequel to the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic movie 'Equestria Girls' coming in a few weeks I've started on an interesting story line which is actually fully formed. So I'll be able to finish it fairly quickly.

BTW, for fans of my 'Family Ties' SPN/NCIS crossover series, I will be working on a new chapter for that.

Back to this story. Now, each of the Mane Six-human forms, anyway-will be dealing with specific disabilities which tend to go with their personalities:

Applejack ends up paralyzed and can't really help on the farm much.

Rainbow Dash loses a leg so she's lost a step in her athletic abilities.

Pinkie Pie is deaf and now has to deal with the noise and chaos going on in her own mind.

The timid Fluttershy suffers from epilepsy which has resulted in very public seizures.

And Rarity is dealing with leukemia and has completely lost her hair.

So the summary goes like this: Some serious trouble befalls Twilight's friends in the Human World and she goes to help, suspecting a non-reformed Discord. But things aren't that simple especially when the Human Mane 6 doesn't have the Elements of Harmony. Or do they?

Please read, review, and let me know what you think.

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><p>MY LITTLE PONY—FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC: Disability Girls<p>

Princess Twilight Sparkle sat before a jeweled mirror that had been set up in one of the smaller rooms of her new castle. Of course it was still weird to her that this impressive place was hers even though she had embraced her official title as the Princess of Friendship.

Still…the situation was overwhelming. She could remember when she first arrived in Ponyville, completely focused on her assigned duties for Princess Celestia and totally resistant to even the slightest notion of making friends.

And now she was a princess with her own role in Equestria and her own kingdom to watch over and protect. Twilight couldn't bring herself to think of the words 'rule over' because she didn't feel like that was her role…maybe someday, perhaps…

Focusing on the mirror before her, Twilight wondered about the world it led to and how everyone was in the other universe. She'd requested that the mirror be moved from the Crystal Empire to Ponyville and Cadence had been more than happy to accommodate her friend and sister-in-law.

Turning to leave the room and head back to her library, Twilight whirled around, jumping a bit and flying upwards for a moment when a marigold-colored unicorn with a yellow and red mane and tail tumbled through the mirror. "Sunset Shimmer? What are you doing here?"

xxxxx

Once Twilight had summoned her friends along with Princesses Celestia, Cadence, and Luna, the group gathered in the throne room of Rainbow Castle along with Discord, a draconequus who had gradually become a very good friend. Once everyone had assembled, Twilight nodded to Sunset Shimmer who began the story of why she was back in Equestria.

"It started just after the Fall Formal," Sunset explained. "Pinkie Pie was setting up for the school Christmas party when there was this huge explosion in the gym."

"The what party?" Applejack asked, confused. What the hay was Christmas?

"Winter holiday in the other world," Twilight replied. "I'll explain later."

Sunset Shimmer carried on with her tale. "Pinkie lost her hearing completely. Then Applejack and Rainbow Dash were finishing cleaning the gym a few days later when part of the ceiling collapsed on top of them."

Twilight gasped in shock and her face was a mix of horror and anxiety. She didn't want to think about what she would do if they'd… "B-But they're okay, right? I mean, they weren't hurt too bad, right?"

Sunset shook her head, regretfully. "Rainbow's leg was crushed. The doctors—the other world's version of healers—actually had to… to cut it off."

Applejack looked from Twilight to Rainbow Dash and could see the horror in her friends' eyes as the idea of her doppelganger's injury sank in. "So this other me…?" Applejack asked, looking at Sunset with a distinct look of trepidation. "How bad is it?"

"You—the other you, I mean—you broke your back," Sunset Shimmer explained. "You haven't been able to walk since the accident. The form you have in the other world—you just have two legs and you can't move them at all."

"What I don't understand is how all this happened," Rarity asked, looking at the other unicorn, with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion. "Two accidents of that magnitude seems highly unlikely."

But the bad news hadn't stopped coming. And after a moment Sunset continued. "I completely agree. Especially since Fluttershy was diagnosed with epilepsy—that's a disorder that occasionally makes her shake uncontrollably-and Rarity lost all of her hair because of treatment for cancer which is a disease that affects her blood."

Twilight left the room without another word, fighting tears as she went. While the rest of the other ponies and princesses queried Sunset Shimmer on the details of Twilight's friends from the other world, Applejack followed the newest alicorn princess and found her upstairs in the castle library.

"You want to go back there, don't you, sugarcube?" Applejack said, knowingly, as she approached her friend and put a hoof on her shoulder. "Find out what's going on and stop it?"

Twilight nodded as she looked around the library. "The problem is…what if it takes longer than three days? What if I'm stuck in that world for 30 moons?" Even without the _actual _Elements of Harmony, Twilight and her friends had still been able to band together to tackle numerous foes. They were a team and needed to be together to be at their strongest.

The country pony smiled reassuringly as she replied, "Don't worry about us, Twi. We can hold down the fort just fine till you figure out who's doin' what in the other world."

"Thanks, Applejack," Twilight replied, sincerely, as she hugged one of her dearest friends.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

_In the human world…_

Near the stallion statue outside of Canterlot High School, the human versions of Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie waited for the return of Sunset Shimmer and—they hoped—Twilight Sparkle.

As Rainbow Dash paced, she tried not to show how much the prosthetic leg she wore was hurting. True it had been a little over a year since the accident and she'd had the artificial limb for just over half that time but it still hurt. But she wouldn't show pain in front of her friends—they had enough to deal with without worrying about her.

No, Rainbow would just tough it out and work her hardest to get back to being the athlete she had been before. Besides… Scootaloo wanted Rainbow Dash to teach her how to play soccer this coming school year, and Canterlot High's best athlete couldn't let the kid down, right?

Until she lost her hearing, Pinkie Pie had no idea just how loud the thoughts running through her head were. It was never ending noise and sometimes she'd just start talking out loud about whatever was on her mind. And then there was the issue with learning sign language. Oh, it wasn't that she was slow to learn—far from it, in fact. She learned as fast as possible, but her friends—no quite as speedy—often had trouble understanding her. Then there was the fact that since Pinkie couldn't hear her own voice she often spoke faster and louder than before. It was all so confusing sometimes and beyond frustrating. But her parents were trying to get together enough money to allow Pinkie to get a cochlear implant which the doctors agreed would be a complete fix. She couldn't wait!

Fluttershy sat with her back against the side of the statue watching her friends. She felt separate from everyone these days and remembered when she'd had her first seizure. It had been in math class and she'd felt weird…disconnected…Then she'd felt like the colors and shapes were all swirling together and the last thing she was aware of was her body starting to tremble. Since then, she'd had nearly 75 seizures in varying degrees of severity.

With the new medications she was on, however, the events had become fewer and not as serious, but Fluttershy still wondered in today would be the day that she'd have another episode. It was something none of her other friends could ever really understand.

In her wheelchair, Applejack nervously watched the side of the statue that served as gateway to the magical land of Equestria—Twilight Sparkle's true home. With everything that had happened, AJ had wondered if everything was simply an unfortunate coincidence or if there was something far more sinister at work. If that was the case, then the 6 friends would need the power of the Equestrian pony princess.

Shifting a bit, Applejack did her best to ignore the pain in her back which was strange compared to the numbness in her lower body. She remembered waking up in the hospital with Granny Smith, Big Macintosh, and Apple Bloom standing around the bed telling her that because of the injuries to her spine, she was paralyzed from the waist down and the odds of any meaningful recovery were very slim. Still, the spinal injury was incomplete and Applejack's physical therapists disagreed with the orthopedic surgeons' prognosis. It might take a long time and a lot of hard work, but the PT's were sure that AJ would walk again.

As the group continued to wait, they each thought about the two friends not present: Rarity and Sunset Shimmer.

Rarity's cancer had hit fast. One day she was fine and talking about submitting her new fashion designs to a magazine in Philadelphia, the next, she'd passed out in history class after a nosebleed and was taken to the hospital where the leukemia had been diagnosed.

The following week, she'd started chemotherapy and shortly afterwards, her perfectly coifed hair began falling out. But still, the fashion maven would not let it get her down. In fact, the previous month, she'd started designing her own line of scarves, wraps, and other head-ware for other people going through chemo related hair loss.

Today, though, Rarity was at the local medical center for her treatment where—everyone knew full well—she'd be holding court with her fellow cancer patients just like a queen. Not that the other patients minded, however. Some of them had even taken the teenager's generous and courageous spirit to heart and used it to find new life and new energy to fight their own battles.

And then there was Sunset Shimmer.

The young woman had spent many weeks apologizing and trying to act as the rest of her friends did in an effort to find her place in the group. And once she saw her new friends dealing with their various physical ailments, she started to try and help each adapt to their new lives. With Rarity, Sunset Shimmer helped out with the fashionista's new lines—modeling or dropping off new designs if the other teenager wasn't up to it.

With Fluttershy, Sunset tried to keep the young woman from hiding away completely as she was prone to doing if she'd had a seizure in school or some other public location.

On weekends, Sunset had started helping out at Sweet Apple Acres—the apple farm that had been in Applejack's family for generations. With AJ out of commission, Sunset Shimmer did her best to help with the chores and the apple harvests. It was hard work, but the young woman felt a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment every time she was at the farm. And, to be honest, there really was nothing more refreshing after a hard day's work than a slice of homemade apple pie and a bottle of fizzy apple cider.

It had been Sunset Shimmer who had first encouraged Pinkie Pie to learn sign language and the first of Pinkie's friends to join in on the lessons. Plus, whenever anyone tried to tease the bubby teenager, Sunset was there almost immediately to defend her friend…if Applejack and Rainbow Dash didn't get there first, that is.

Of all Sunset's newfound friends, Rainbow Dash had been the hardest to help…usually owing to the fact that the young woman kept insisting that she didn't need help, didn't need to take it easy, and really wasn't in that much pain. Of course, Fluttershy liked to argue that Twilight Sparkle had stated that Rainbow's Element of Harmony was loyalty, not honesty.

Still, Sunset Shimmer kept a close eye on Rainbow Dash and would get the others together if the young athlete showed signs of pushing herself too far.

Everyone's thoughts and musings were brought to a halt as the side of the stautue that acted as the gateway to Equestria glowed for a moment before two figures came though.

"Good to see you again, Twilight," Applejack said, beaming at Twilight Sparkle.

"Oh, it's been so long," Fluttershy added, hugging Twilight briefly. Looking at the others, she went on. "Sunset Shimmer told you what's been happening?"

Twilight nodded as she tried to get used to being on two feet once more. "I don't know exactly what's been going on," she stated up front. "But I might have an idea." Before she could elaborate, she noticed that one of her friends was missing. Remembering what Sunset Shimmer had said back in Equestria, she asked, "Where's Rarity? Is she okay?"

"Rarity's got her treatment today," Rainbow Dash explained. "But she should be home soon. We can meet her at the coffee shop. I'll text her and let her know you're here, Twilight."

With a sudden gasp, Pinkie Pie seemed to verbally explode as she burst out, "OHMYGOSH I almost forgot! I've been keeping an eye on Flash Sentry for you, Twilight, and between you and me, he is still SOOOOO in love with you! I mean, I even tried asking him out just as a test to see if he was still totally into you and he totally is but what did you expect? I mean you're smart, funny, pretty, and not to mention the whole being a princess thing which—"

"PINKIE!" Four of the five friends shouted, three of them signaling that the bubbly teenager needed to tone it down.

Signing as she spoke, Sunset Shimmer added, "Twilight hasn't learned sign language yet but if I know her, she'll have it down in a few days."

"That reminds me," Applejack said, a thought forming in her mind. "Don't we have a deadline we're workin' under?"

When the others looked at Twilight, the Equestrian princess shook her head, decisively. "Not this time. I'll stay as long as it takes. The portal opens every 30 moons so logically that's every 30 nights."

"Well, then what are we hanging around here for?" Rainbow Dash said, excitedly. "Let's do it!"

xxxxxxx

As the group headed for the Leaf and Bean coffeehouse, Sunset Shimmer and Pinkie Pie taught Twilight some basic words and phrases in sign language as well as the name signs for everyone in the group.

"When you're using sign language everything gets shortened," Pinkie explained, talking in her usual 100-miles-an-hour speed. "So you're not using as many words as if you were talking out loud which is one of the things I don't like about it because I love talking and it's really hard for me because now I can't hear what I'm saying which had made for some really funny moments but it's still kind of awkward and –oops!" She stopped as Twilight signed 'slow down'.

"Its okay, Pinkie," Twilight replied, signing at the same time. She wanted to learn more about using this language that was completely dependent on hand signals and signs. It was fascinating to say the least.

Inside the coffee shop, the group found Rarity sitting at one of the tables with a cup of her favorite apple-berry tea. "Twilight!" She said, brightly, even though her tone was a bit tired. Still, she got up and hugged her friend. "Oh, you haven't changed a bit, have you?"

Twilight sat down and looked away when she caught herself staring at Rarity's lack of hair.

Rarity—spotting the look right away—smiled. "Oh, don't worry about it, Twilight," she insisted. "I'm used to it by now. Besides, as dreadfully icky as the chemotherapy makes me feel, not having to worry about bad hair days is a very small bonus."

Once the group had cups of coffee and a plate of oatmeal cookies to share, Twilight shared her suspicions with the others. "Back in Equestria, my friends and I came across an enemy that reveled in chaos and disorder. His name is Discord. Back there he was made up of body parts of different animals. I don't know what he'd look like here."

"Well, I can't recall seeing anyone strange-looking hanging around," Rainbow Dash replied after a moment. "And besides—that explains me and Applejack…maybe Pinkie Pie. But it doesn't explain Rarity and Fluttershy."

That was the other problem that had confounded Twilight Sparkle, both here and in Equestria. Back home, Discord might have the magical abilities to cause Fluttershy's epilepsy or Rarity's cancer, but not in this world. Not without magic…unless he'd found some sort of source in this world.

xxxxx

Not being able to sleep in the high school library this time around, Twilight accepted Applejack's offer to stay at Sweet Apple Acres.

The 7 friends swiftly agreed to reconvene the following morning at the farm for breakfast and to come up with some ideas as to how they could start investigating what was going on.

Arriving at the farm and going into the house, Twilight paused at the incredible aroma in the air. It was rich and spicy and maybe just a touch smoky. There was also the fabulous scent of a fresh baked apple pie.

"We're home, Granny Smith!" Applejack called as she wheeled into the kitchen. Looking at the pot simmering away on the stove, she headed towards it and gave the thick stew a good stir, a wistful look on her face.

"AJ!" said a woman with long blonde hair pulled back in a braid. She had the same color eyes as Applejack and as she came into the kitchen, she smiled warmly. "Honey, you didn't say you were bringing company. Who's your friend?"

Twilight looked at the mystery woman and with a jolt, she realized that this had to be Applejack's mother. "I'm Twilight Sparkle," she said, hurriedly. "I'm visiting from—"

"Philadelphia," Applejack supplied, swiftly. "She and I have been penpals for a long time now." Looking at Twilight, she said, "Twilight, this is my mom, Honeycrisp."

Twilight quietly shook hands with Applejack's mother before signaling to AJ that the two needed to talk in private. "It's very nice to meet you," Twilight added, smiling. "Um, Applejack and I need to talk about something. Give us a minute?"

Without any further explanation, Twilight led her friend out of the room before Applejack took the hint and headed into her bedroom and closed the door. "What's goin' on, Twilight? It's just my mother. You look like you've seen a ghost."

Twilight slowly sat down on the bed, unsure of how to break the news to her best friend. "Well, you see… In Equestria, your parents are… dead."

Applejack could only stare in disbelief at her friend. After a long moment, she studied Twilight's expression and—as horrible an idea as it was to consider—knew the Equestrian Princess spoke the truth. "How'd it happen?" she wanted to know.

Twilight shrugged, uncertainly. "I don't know. You never really talk about it so I always figured it happened when you were young. Maybe right after Apple Bloom was born."

Thinking of her younger sister, Applejack felt a stab of heartache as she realized that in the other world the kid would have probably never known her parents. Seeing that Twilight looked saddened that she had shared such disturbing information, AJ put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Don't worry, sugarcube. Knowing what things could be like, it makes dealing with this—" she gestured at the wheelchair and her lower body. "—a little easier."

x

At dinner, Honeycrisp dished up bowls of the delicious smelling stew that had been simmering on the stove while Granny Smith pulled the apple pies out of the over and Applejack's father, Cider Apple, brushed melted butter over the top of the cornbread cooling on the counter.

"You're not a vegetarian, are you, Twilight?" Cider asked as he studied his daughter's friend.

"Well, usually," Twilight admitted, but even though she would have preferred a salad, she was very curious about the stew sitting before her. "But I'm always up for trying something new."

"That's the spirit!" Granny Smith exclaimed, happily. "Dig in, y'all, before the chili gets cold."

Twilight took a bite of the chili and chewed a moment before swallowing. This was like nothing she'd ever tasted before! It was rich and spice and there was the sharp acidity of tomatoes. It was… meaty. When she'd been in this world previously, Twilight had researched the customs of humans and had been baffled as to how they could eat cows, pigs and chickens—animals she spoke with and cared for back home.

Still, she had to admit… the chili was quite good. Better than that in fact. It was amazing—as was the cornbread. Twilight surprised Applejack's family as well as herself by eating two bowls of chili and a fair portion of the cornbread.

"Now, make sure you save some room for dessert," Granny Smith admonished, as she saw Twilight contemplating licking out her bowl. "You've got to have some of my apple pie and Cider's homemade vanilla ice cream."

"My dad makes the best ice cream in town," Apple Bloom piped up with a grin. "And he's been testing flavors all week!"

Grinning at Applejack's parents, Twilight said, simply, "I can't wait."


	2. Chapter 2

AUTHOR'S NOTES: So after watching 'Equestria Girls: Rainbow Rocks' I wanted to kind of use that for how I wrote Sunset Shimmer who is becoming one of my favorite characters. People underestimate her, I think.

Also, in regards to Rarity... don't worry. She'll be fine by the end of this story. I just want to put her through the wringer first.

And in case someone doesn't know how I do things since I'm throwing in some seriously emotional moments, this chapter is short. Next one should be longer.

Since it applies later on, words in **bold** are meant to be in sign language.

* * *

><p>Chapter 2<p>

The next morning, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Sunset Shimmer arrived at Sweet Apple Acres just after 9. Honeycrisp promptly told the group of friends to have a seat before starting to put breakfast on the table.

"So where's Twilight?" Rainbow Dash asked, curiously when Applejack came into the dining room alone.

"Sleepin' in," Applejack replied, simply, as she wheeled up to the table. "She was sawin' logs when I got up this morning."

"Oh, that's nice," Rainbow snapped, sarcastically. "Why should we interrupt the Princess' beauty sleep? It's not like we need her help or anything." Crossing her arms in a huff, she gave an annoyed glance in the direction of the guest bedroom.

Applejack could understand her friend's annoyance, but she had to defend Twilight. "That's not really fair, Rainbow Dash. For all we know she was up half the night tryin' to figure out a way to find this Discord fellow."

"Besides," Rarity added, being sure to keep her voice down so Applejack's mother didn't hear. "We have no idea what Twilight has been doing back home. For all we know this is as close as she's ever had to a vacation."

That seemed to put Rainbow Dash over the edge and she snapped again. "Well, I know what she _hasn't_ been doing—getting a leg amputated or losing her ability to walk! She hasn't been dealing with cancer or epilepsy or losing her hearing!"

"Rainbow Dash has a point," Fluttershy said, softly. She hated admitting it, but there was some truth to her friend's words. "Twilight may be our friend but she hasn't been facing the problems we've faced. Maybe she should give us a little more consideration."

"You said it!" Pinkie Pie joined in, speaking and signing in her usual rapid-fire mode. "For all we know, she was thinking about finding Flash Sentry and getting together with him instead of helping out her friends!"

Rarity looked at each of her friends in turn with an admonishing gaze. "All of you should be absolutely ashamed of yourselves," she chastised. "No, Twilight Sparkle has never dealt with any of the physical calamities we've been dealing with. But she's dealt with things we can only imagine—monsters, spells… being an actual Princess. I can't imagine that's a simple task for _anyone_." Seeing that she had her friends' full attention, Rarity went on. "And yes, Rainbow Dash, maybe Twilight does need to better understand our predicament, but we need to also take the time to understand _hers_. That's what _friends_ do after all."

"Sorry!" Twilight said quickly as she entered the room looking embarrassed. Sitting down at the table between Sunset Shimmer and Fluttershy, she explained. "Trying to sleep with wings is _really_ uncomfortable. This was the first good night's sleep I've had in months."

Before anyone else could say anything, Pinkie Pie silenced the others and signed as she pointed. **'Applejack, who's that talking to your mom?'**

Everyone looked and Applejack shook her head, replying, **'No idea. Never seen him before.'**

The man was fairly tall and professional looking and as the girls watched, the man seemed to be unaware that they were listening to the conversation.

"I'm more than willing to offer triple what the farm is worth," the stranger said with a charming smile. "We'd, of course, want to keep Sweet Apple Acres in business as you are the town's sole apple orchard and cider mill. No one else makes cider and baked goods quite as good as you."

Honeycrisp looked at the offered papers thoughtfully before turning to Cider Apple. "Honey, this kinda money… Think of AJ. This would cover her medical bills… It would even be enough for her college fund."

"This farm has been in my family for more than 100 years," Cider argued. But as he looked at the papers, he finally asked, "Can we… have some time to talk about this?"

Twilight looked at each of her friends in turn before finally focusing on Applejack. "Are your parents selling the farm?"

"First I've ever heard of it," Applejack replied, dumbfounded.

xxxxxxx

While Fluttershy headed out for a doctor's appointment and Applejack talked with her parents about the impending sale of Sweet Apple Acres, Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash headed for the town library to go on the internet and look up the mysterious man who wanted to buy Sweet Apple Acres.

Rarity and Sunset Shimmer, however, headed to the boutique as the pair talked about the current goings-on.

"What's troubling you, darling?" Rarity asked, seeing that Sunset Shimmer looked depressed about something. "And don't try saying 'nothing' because it's obviously something."

Sunset shrugged as she glanced down the street towards Canterlot High School. "School's starting next week. Guess I'm just worried about what's going to happen… and if everyone's still going to be hung up on what I did at the Fall Formal."

"That is all in the past, dear," Rarity assured her. "You've clearly shown that you are not the same person as before."

"I guess," Sunset muttered, not sure if she believed the reassurance. "Last year I just felt like everyone was waiting for me to mess up and go back to being the bad girl. How do I know this year is going to be any different?"

Thinking on that for a moment as they neared the boutique, Rarity finally shrugged. "We can never know what the future holds, darling. We can only take each day as it comes. I mean, for all _I_ know, I might not even make it till next week."

Sunset Shimmer stopped dead as she stared at Rarity. "Wait, what are talking about? I thought you said you were doing okay?"

Rarity gave a smile that was half reassurance and half acceptance. "I may have exaggerated just a wee bit," she admitted, finally. "The doctors are increasing my chemo treatments day after tomorrow since my last blood tests weren't showing the improvement we were hoping for."

Looking at her friend with concern, Sunset asked, simply, "How bad are we talking? Seriously?"

"I may have to be admitted to the hospital next week," Rarity admitted, sadly. Seeing that her friend needed some cheering up after such heavy news, she added, "Come with me. I have something for you."

Once inside the shop, Sunset Shimmer watched her friend as she went to cabinet and pulled out a large case before opening it up to reveal 6 small jewelry boxes, each with a different design on the front—a pink butterfly, an orange apple, a blue balloon, a red lightning bolt, a purple star, and a red and yellow sun. "I made these months ago," Rarity explained, holding out the last box. "I thought it might be a good time to give you yours."

Sunset Shimmer opened the box revealing a small pendant of a red and gold sun on a leather cord. "It's beautiful," she said, appreciatively.

Rarity took the necklace and put it around Sunset's neck with a smile. "I know it's been hard on you trying to change from who you used to be. And I also know you wanted to stand up for Twilight earlier."

Sunset fiddled with the pendant as she spoke. "I know Rainbow Dash was just being honest but none of you know what it was like being the student of a _princess_… much less being one yourself. Twilight came back because she wants to help and she really didn't have to do that. I don't think it was fair, the way the others were acting."

"Never be afraid of being honest and telling others how you feel, darling," Rarity said, kindly. "Even your friends."

As the friends talked, neither noticed the magical shimmer emanating from the pendant.

xxxxxxxx

In the library, Twilight felt troubled by the fact that she didn't feel like she'd actually be able to help her friends. In fact, the more she thought about it, the whole trip here was a waste of time.

"Look, I'm sorry about earlier," Rainbow Dash said, quietly as she joined Twilight at the computers. "Rarity was right. I mean, you're an actual princess. You've got lots of stuff going on right and—"

"No, _you_ were right," Twilight admitted, looking at her friend. "I don't know what it's been like for all of you." She sighed as she added, "What I _do_ know is that I'm suddenly wondering if this is magical at all."

Rainbow Dash looked around to see where Pinkie Pie was and after confirming that the deaf teenager was nowhere about, she quickly worked on the computer to bring up her email account. "Let me show you something, Twilight."

Twilight read the email and did a double take at the last part. "A full college scholarship? That's a good thing, right?"

Rainbow Dash leaned back in her chair before explaining. "After I lost my leg, this guy comes to see me in the hospital. Says he'll take care of everything—hospital bills, getting me a state of the art prosthetic… you name it. Then last week, I get this email from him saying he'll give me all the money I need to go to any college I want… whether I play sports or not."

Her critical mind going to work, Twilight asked, "Was this the same guy talking to Applejack's parents?"

Nodding, Rainbow replied, "I didn't recognize him at first 'cause I was pretty out of it the first time I saw him. But I remember his voice. It's the same guy."

It was then that Twilight realized that she, too, recognized the voice of the man who had offered to buy Sweet Apple Acres. "It's Discord. I'm sure of it."

"Then what's his plan?" Rainbow Dash wanted to know. It didn't make a lick of sense. "Unless…"

"Unless what?" Twilight asked, worried that she wouldn't like the answer.

"Twilight, are you _sure_ there's no magic here he can tap into?"

The idea was unsettling to say the least and after considering the trouble Discord had caused in Equestria before becoming good, Twilight had a pretty good idea of what his first move would be. "The first time Discord went after me and my friends in Equestria, he tried to split us up by turning the Elements of Harmony."

Rainbow Dash thought about that for a moment and as Pinkie Pie came over, she realized that slowly, they had all lost touch with their Elements of Friendship.

Applejack had stopped being honest with her friends—and herself—about how much pain she was in on any given day.

Pinkie Pie didn't really laugh as much and she was often touchy about being deaf.

Fluttershy tried to keep her usual calm, kind demeanor, but lately she'd been—for lack of a better word—snippy.

Even Rainbow Dash had been about to turn on Twilight just because the princess had slept in late that morning.

The only one who seemed immune to the whole thing was Rarity and the more Rainbow Dash thought about it, the more she realized that Rarity might just be the key to putting a stop to Discord.

xxxxx


End file.
